The Virgin Islands
Port Authority (VIPA) owns and operates all of the public seaports
in the Virgin Islands except the West Indian Company Dock in
Havensight, St. Thomas.
The following is a
synopsis of the features of each VIPA marine facility accompanied by
a photo of the site. Please click on each image for a larger
view.
| St.
Croix |
St.
John |
St.
Thomas |
|
Ann E. Abramson
Marine Facility, Frederiksted
Gallows Bay Dock, Christiansted
Seaplane Terminal,
Christiansted
Wilfred Allick Port and Transshipment Center (Containerport),
Krause Lagoon
Gordon A. Finch
Molasses Pier, Krause Lagoon |
Loredon L. Boynes, Sr.
Dock, Cruz Bay
St. John Cargo Dock, Cruz Bay
Enighed
Pond Marine Facility, Enighed |
Crown Bay Cruise Ship
Port, Crown Bay
Crown Bay Cargo Port, Crown
Bay
Wilmoth
E. Blyden Marine Facility, Charlotte Amalie
Seaplane Terminal, Charlotte Amalie
The
Waterfront, Charlotte Amalie
Urman Victor Fredericks
Marine Terminal, Red Hook |
The
Ann E. Abramson Marine Facility, located in Frederiksted, is
the main cruise ship port in St. Croix. The 1,526-foot pier can accommodate two eagle-class vessels, weighing a
maximum of 142,000 gross tons each with drafts up to 29 feet and two
mini-cruise vessels with drafts of 18 feet. Anchorage is also
available in the outer harbor for larger ships.
The platform of the pier is equipped with a fendering system that is
designed for submarines. All berths at this facility provide potable
water and telephone lines. Arrangements for these services can be
made through VIPA's marine office in St. Croix. Bunkering services
are currently available from the HOVENSA Corporation via barge. Fuel
is available in blends as specified by the cruise lines, and cargo
handling is arranged by the ship's agent or directly by the cruise
line. This approach has proven to be the most cost effective for the
cruise lines.
A shopping area is located within walking distance to the pier.
Additionally, ground transportation and tours are available from the
pier to historical sites, beaches and dive venues.
As
an incentive to prospective cruise lines, VIPA has waived all marine
fees for cruise ships visiting St. Croix.
The
Gallows Bay Dock, located in Christiansted, is a vital link
for small cargo vessels serving St. Croix and other Caribbean
islands. The dock is conveniently located about a mile from downtown
Christiansted. The length of the dock is 400 feet with a maximum
draft of 16 feet. It can accommodate mini-cruise vessels, small
inter-island sloops, ferries, private yachts, cargo vessels and U.S.
Coast Guard vessels.
The facility is equipped with a passenger lounge, a lighted walkway,
public telephones, limited covered and open storage areas and a
roll-on/roll-off ramp. Forklifts and other services are available
through the ship agent. Shopping is also available in Christiansted
and nearby at Chandler's Wharf. The dock at this facility was
repaired in 2002.
The Port Authority plans
to shift all cargo operations from this port to the
Gordon A. Finch
Molasses Pier along the south shore of St. Croix. In 2006,
VIPA approved a lease agreement between the Authority and Gallows
Bay Development Partners to develop a luxury marina at
the area of this port currently used by cargo vessels. Plans
to develop the marina should begin by late 2009.
The
Seaplane Terminal in St. Croix is located in Christiansted.
Air service is available from this facility daily from Christiansted
to downtown Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas. Flights are also
available to San Juan Puerto Rico, and packages are offered to
connect passengers to the British Virgin Islands via inter-island
ferries. Visit
http://www.seaborneairlines.com/ for more information.
The
Wilfred "Bomba" Allick Port and Transshipment Center,
located in Krause Lagoon, is locally known as "The Containerport."
This facility is located on a 45-acre parcel on the south shore of
St. Croix between HOVENSA and VIPA’s Molasses Pier. It is 12 miles
from the Ann E. Abramson Marine Facility, and it is located close to
the Henry E. Rohlsen International Airport and an industrial park.
This port is the hub for commercial and industrial marine activity
on St. Croix and serves as a transshipment center to many other
locations.
The length of the dock is 1,200 feet. It can berth vessels with
drafts up to 30 feet. (VIPA is currently reinforcing the dock.) This
facility simultaneously accommodates containerized roll-on/roll-off
and lift-on/lift-off cargo. The pier also has a 30-ton gantry crane
to facilitate the loading and unloading of containers. A
30,000-square foot warehouse is located on the site for storage of
cargo that is less than container load. Several acres are also
available for the open storage of containerized and other large
cargo or equipment.
The
Gordon A. Finch Molasses Pier, located in Krause Lagoon,
sits on an eight-acre site on the south shore of St. Croix. It
provides docking space for cable vessels and for cable storage. The
facility consists of a roll-on/roll-off ramp, two separate breasting
dolphins for berthing bulk-type vessels and space for bulk cargo
storage.
The facility is equipped with asphalt and molasses pipelines that
extend from the dock to storage tanks. It is also equipped with a
560-foot by 70-foot concrete lighted working apron and a 560-foot
sheet pile bulkhead with breasting dolphins on both ends. It can
accommodate large vessels with drafts up to 29 feet.
This multi-purpose facility is primarily used to import molasses by
tanker vessels to the Virgin Islands Rum Industries Limited
distillery. It is also used for the importation of all liquid
asphalt to the island, bulk cargo such as gravel, cement blocks and
other construction material critical to St. Croix's construction
industry. The pier can also accommodate submarine cable vessels,
which are used to lay and repair intercontinental underwater
telephone cables.
The
Loredon L. Boynes Sr. Dock, located in Cruz Bay, is the main
port of entry to St. John. The length of the dock is 267 feet. It
can accommodate four vessels simultaneously. Several ferry operators
provide service from this facility to Red Hook and the Charlotte
Amalie Harbor in St. Thomas. Dinghy dock berthing is also available.
There is also a passenger terminal at this facility that houses the
Port Authority's dock master’s office, a ferry ticket booth and an
open air waiting area.
The
St. John Cargo Dock is located in Cruz Bay, St. John. The
length of the dock is 296 feet with a draft of 10 feet. The facility
also has a small, one-acre area for cargo handling and temporary
storage. With the development of the Enighed Pond Marine Facility in
2005, the Port Authority has shifted all cargo operations to
Enighed. The St. John Cargo Dock is now used for the berthing of
passenger ferries and tenders. Passenger ferries and charter vessels
that require federal inspection must also use this facility. VIPA is
in the process of developing designs to reconfigure this dock into a
ferry passenger facility.
The
Enighed Pond Marine Facility in St. John was completed in
2005. The pond was developed into a cargo facility to accommodate
the increase of cargo traffic at the St. John Cargo Dock, which
previously handled cargo and foreign vessels in a limited space in
Cruz Bay, St. John. VIPA has shifted all cargo activity to Enighed
Pond, is in the process of developing designs to reconfigure this
dock into a ferry passenger facility.
The Enighed Pond Marine Facility consists of 650 lineal feet of
berthing space for cargo vessels, six acres for cargo handling and
storage, and a channel and turn-around area for vessels up to 175
feet in length with a draft of up to 12 feet. A ribbon cutting
ceremony commemorated the opening of this long-awaited cargo port on
St. John on April 21, 2006.
The
Crown Bay Cruise Ship Port,
located in Subbase, is one of two cruise ship ports in St. Thomas.
It has two docks which can accommodate three cruise ships
simultaneously. The main dock has two berths. The south side
of the dock is 940 feet in length with a draft of 37 feet, and the
north side of the dock is 940 feet in length with a draft of 28
feet. The adjoining dock is 435 feet in length with a draft of 27
feet. Vessels can obtain access to the Crown Bay Cruise Ship Port
through the East Gregerie and the West Gregerie channels. Potable
water, telephone and taxi services are available at this site.
In
an effort to keep up with the increasingly competitive cruise ship
business and meet the demands of the cruise lines who are building
larger ships with more passengers, the Port Authority invested $28
million in 2003 to develop the Crown Bay Center
- an upscale commercial facility that will offer dining, shopping
and other entertainment venues that can be enjoyed by visitors and
residents alike.
The
Crown Bay Cargo Port is comprised of 20 acres. The bulkhead
at the facility is 2,720 feet, with a maximum draft of 30 feet.
Containerized and general cargo are handled at this facility.
This port is a vital link to the Virgin Islands economy as most of
its foods, materials and other goods are imported. The Crown
Bay Cargo Port also serves as a trans-shipment port for cargo being
shipped to many of the other Caribbean islands.
The
Edward Wilmoth Blyden IV Marine Terminal is located in
Charlotte Amalie, the capital of the Virgin Islands. This facility
is a hub for seaplane service between the U.S. Virgin Islands and
ferry service between the U.S.V.I. And the British Virgin Islands,
and between St. Thomas and Puerto Rico. The terminal houses the St.
Thomas offices of VIPA’s Marine Division, the federal inspection
services, ferry ticket booths and an open-air waiting area. The
terminal sits on the St. Thomas waterfront apron and hosts a
restaurant specializing in Caribbean cuisine on the second floor
with impressive views of the harbor.
The
Seaplane Terminal in St. Thomas is located adjacent to the
Blyden Terminal, downtown Charlotte Amalie. Air service from
St. Thomas to Christiansted, St. Croix, San Juan, Puerto Rico and
also offers connection packages to the British Virgin Islands via
inter-island ferries. Visit
http://www.seaborneairlines.com/ for more information.
The
Waterfront, located in the Charlotte Amalie Harbor,
encompasses 3,200 feet of bulkhead space that runs parallel to the
shopping district in St. Thomas. The Waterfront can accommodate
mini-cruise ships and cruise ship tenders. The draft alongside The
Waterfront ranges from four feet to 14 feet.
VIPA is planning to
upgrade the
Waterfront apron to make it more user friendly and improve its
aesthetic appearance, as it is the center of much activity in the
downtown area and widely used by pedestrians.
Urman Victor Fredericks Marine Terminal (Red
Hook), is located on the eastern end of St.
Thomas and primarily serves passengers traveling between St. Thomas
and St. John, and St. Thomas and the British Virgin Islands.
The Red Hook Marine Facility has been
significantly upgraded to improve the passenger experience. VIPA
hired Island Roads Corporation in the fall of 2005 as the contractor
for this major capital project, which included expanding the dock
and constructing a 9,500 foot terminal with additional open-air
seating along the dock. The new terminal hosts the ferry ticket
counters, a bar, and a variety of other stores. The VIPA
dockmaster’s office is also located within the terminal.
In addition, VIPA has constructed a new
roll-on/roll-off cargo facility, created additional parking spaces,
a passenger pick-up area, and a pedestrian walkway along the main
road. Construction began in the fall of 2005 and was completed in
Sept. 2007.
The $10 million project was financed in part by the Federal Highway
Administration GARVEE Bonds ($2.5 million) and a grant from the
Federal Economic Development Administration ($1.5 million). The
remainder was funded by the Port Authority.
The 26th Legislature of the Virgin
Islands passed Act. No. 6897, which names the terminal in honor of
the late Captain Urman Victor Fredericks of St. Thomas (Feb. 27,
1926 - April 26, 1974). Fredericks is credited with pioneering
the barge industry between St. Thomas and Puerto Rico which he
operated from Red Hook. In 1966, he used his own heavy equipment to
clear land at Red Hook with the vision of a marine facility
eventually being built on the site. Over 40 years later, his vision
has come to fruition.
